How some P.E.I. businesses are adapting and staying safe during COVID-19

While non-essential businesses have closed up shop in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19, some are coming up with creative ways to serve their customers while their doors are closed.

Some businesses are offering delivery or curbside pickup of everything from music, to books, to board games. 

P.E.I.'s chief public health officer Dr. Heather Morrison has said these new ways of serving customers are fine, as long as proper safety measures are taken. 

"For instance some of the retail stores that may not be considered essential certainly are still having online options available," she said. 

"It's to try to make sure the staff in those retail stores while they're working, maintain social distance and and do so safely and that they're able to provide a service that is in a very safe way for everyone and protects the public and the staff." 

Bookmark, an independent bookstore in Charlottetown has started to do both curbside pickup and delivery for its customers, providing puzzles and reading material for Islanders. 

When the call came to close their doors, staff was determined to find ways to continue to provide services to their customers.

For deliveries, Lori Cheverie, manager at Bookmark, said she travels in the car by herself, touches the door bell with a cloth or a sanitary wipe, leaves the package on the step and then walks away. In apartments, Cheverie said she leaves orders in the foyer, and is careful not to venture into individual apartments. 

"If we felt it wasn't a safe place to leave it, we're not leaving it," she said. "I'm not getting out of my car … if I think people are going to be all around me."

I still love seeing people face to face and I really miss my customers.— Savannah Belsher-MacLean, owner of Green Eye Designs

For curbside pickup, payments are not accepted in the store, and packages are either being put in the customer's trunk while they remain in the car. And, there's only one or two members of staff in the store at one time, all adhering to the physical distancing orders. 

"We're trying to do different ways because we want there to be a bookstore when this is over and, you know, we bookstores don't run on huge margins," she said. 

Green Eye Designs, a clothing and jewelry store in Charlottetown closed over COVID-19 concerns on March 13, said Savannah Belsher-MacLean, owner of the business.

"By Saturday the 14th we had our first message from a customer asking if they could still access some of our products," she said. 

That showed Belsher-MacLean that there was still a demand for her goods, and she said there are still moments in life where people are looking to send gifts to each other and connect, even if they can't come together. 

"There was still those life events that were happening even though we were starting to self isolate and we decided that we needed to come up with a solution and the delivery was born from that," she said.

Sterilized items

Belsher-MacLean said either she or another member of staff have been offering delivery to their customers in the Charlottetown area. They either ring the bell or text the customer, leaving the package on the doorstep. Payments are done online. 

"We go through the store and we will either hand sanitize and then sterilize the item or we'll kind of quarantine the item, make sure that it's not been touched for a few days," she said. 

"And make sure everything is done in a completely sterile, disinfected way so that the delivery can be made safely."

She also noted that as they make deliveries, staff are making sure they keep themselves safe as well. 

"We are hand sanitizing, we're wearing our masks, and as soon as we ring the doorbell or knock on the door we step away probably about 12 feet," she said. 

Belsher-MacLean thinks she might continue this service once COVID-19 restrictions are lifted. 

"I still love seeing people face to face and I really miss my customers and people that come through the shop. So I'm really looking forward to when we can open our doors again," she said. 

"But definitely some sort of online delivery service would be something smart to carry on through."

COVID-19: What you need to know

What are the symptoms of COVID-19?

Common symptoms include:

• Fever.
• Cough.
• Tiredness.

But more serious symptoms can develop, including difficulty breathing and pneumonia, which can lead to death.

Health Canada has built a self-assessment tool.

What should I do if I feel sick?

Isolate yourself and call 811. Do not visit an emergency room or urgent care centre to get tested. A health professional at 811 will give you advice and instructions.

How can I protect myself?

• Wash your hands frequently and thoroughly.

• Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth.

• Clean regularly touched surfaces regularly.

• Practise physical distancing.

More detailed information on the outbreak is available on the federal government's website.

More COVID-19 stories from CBC P.E.I.